Al Fresco

The Top Pleasure of Summer Evenings

Here are a few tables that invited guests to a special atmosphere on a summer night. My favorite rite of the season is the round of leisurely parties that begin with sparking wine in the garden and the migration at dusk to a beautiful table. And the food that focuses summer! Tomato tarts, almond gazpacho, spicy watermelon, pickled zucchini, panzanella, caprese, fried zucchini blossoms, gelato, lemon pistachio pasta, roasted vegetables, pea and mint soup, cucumber sesame salad—all the freshest picks at the market. Our small vegetable garden is pouring forth cucumbers and zucchini, while lingering on tomatoes. The melons were dinged by the recent hailstorm. Around here in Tuscany, the only thing lacking at the feasts is corn. Corn is for animals, except for that used for polenta, a northern dish not much used locally except in winter when big pork roasts are king.

On the table, garden flowers or wild fennel and weeds, the last lingering roses. With this heat, sometimes the hydrangeas picked in late afternoon are already expiring when the sun goes down. At our house:

Below, fun, memorable tables at the homes of friends and the delectable treats of summer.

May the heat waves break! Here’s to a perfect summer evening with friends. And if you’re grilling corn, throw one on the fire for me!

Note—many of the plates I use are from Vietri, with others from antique markets and from pottery shops in Deruta. For tablecloths, napkins, and for bedlinen, I love the traditional fabrics of Busatti.